All beings possess such buddha-nature in their innate nature. For most of us,
though, it remains secret, as we have not even a clue as to its presence because it
has been fully covered by the emotional and intellectual clouds of the mind that
are rooted in dualistic grasping.
Attainment of buddhahood is not about getting somewhere else through some
external means. It is about awakening the innate nature of our own mind itself, as
it is, and transcending the conceptual mind. Rigzin Jigme Lingpa writes,
Realization of the intrinsic awareness that transcends the mind
Is the unique teaching of Dzogpa Chenpo.^2The Third Dodrupchen writes, “In Dzogpa Chenpo, you meditate solely on the
intrinsic awareness of the mind, using it as the path training. It does not employ
thoughts (rtog pa) since thoughts are mind (sems). Having made the distinction of
intrinsic awareness from mind, you just contemplate on it.”^3
In this lineage, not only have many meditators realized the true intrinsic
awareness, buddhahood, but they have also physically transformed their gross
bodies into subtle light bodies or fully dissolved them without leaving any remains
behind at the time of death as the sign of their merging into the union of the
ultimate sphere and primordial wisdom.
Dzogchen is the swiftest path and easiest goal to attain. Paradoxically, however,
it is also the hardest for many of us to realize, as we are completely trapped in the
habits of elaborate dualistic concepts and emotional afflictions, with no idea how
to ease them and awaken the ultimate openness (emptiness) of our own minds.
That is why Kyabje Dudjom Rinpoche once gave me this most simple and
profound teaching, “The greatest difficulty of Dzogpa Chenpo meditation is that it
is too easy for many to comprehend!”
In order to make the journey on this path and realize the true intrinsic nature of
the mind as it is, it is essential to be under the careful guidance of a truly
awakened master. Because of our strong habits of dualistic perception, without
guidance we would easily fall into the traps of dualistic perception in various gross
or subtle layers of the mind, without our recognizing them, while our meditation
is in progress.
The inner secrets of the mind taught in Dzogchen that have been whispered
among the fully awakened masters for centuries in the sacred sanctuaries of the
Himalaya have been revealed clearly and thoroughly in this book by the highly
accomplished teacher Tulku Pema Rigtsal Rinpoche. Keith Dowman, with his
brilliant gift of letters, has rendered this text into English with great care.
Tulku Rinpoche, who comes from the lineage of Degyal Rinpoche of the Dudjom
Lingpa tradition, received this teaching from the greatest Dzogchen masters of the
twentieth century. In particular, he was taught and trained in the high remote
mountains of Eastern Tibet by two most brilliant scholars and ascetic hermits,
Khenpo Dawai Wozer of Rahor and Khenpo Choying Khyabdal of Horshul, of the
Longchen Nyintig lineage as their heart-son for years.
The fundamental teaching of Mahayana Buddhism in general and of Dzogchen